To Mend A Broken Heart
by everythingaddison
Summary: Prior to day 4, Jack Bauer meets a severely, mentally wrecked Audrey Raines and falls instantly in love with her. His sole mission - as well as working for DoD - is to save Audrey from the wreckage of her tortured heart.
1. All American Girl

_Okay, so this is my first 24 fic! *chorus of horray's* just my imagination? Okay._

 _So, those who have read my fics before, will probably know how terrible I am at updating sometimes but I wrote this whole chapter today and I'm loving writing this so far so hopefully they'll be more to come real quick!_

 _I don't own 24, as much as I wish I did... These characters are not mine._

 _I'm from the UK, so I've tried to make the dialogue in American 'terms' but spellings and stuff it's mainly UK English._

 _This chapter is an introduction I guess to Audrey's life before she met Jack (before day 4) and I hope y'all like it!_

 _(It's not beta read so there's bound to be many mistakes...)_

 _In this fic, Audrey will be as old and have the same birthday as her actress, Kim Raver, just to save over-complicating things._

 _Please enjoy this!_

* * *

 **Chapter 1 - All-American Girl**

 **03:46 P.M. - July 23rd 1975 - Rocky Beach, Warwick, Rhode Island**

A 7 year old girl with beach-blonde hair tied up in a long plait that bobbed freely up and down ran across the white sandy beach in Rhode Island. Slightly further behind were her mother and father, James and Alicia Heller. Young Audrey Louise Heller ran freely around the beach. She loved the smell of the ocean. She loved the feeling of the sand underneath her bare feet. As much as she loved running around, all she wanted to do right then and there was swim in the sea. She turned around to face her parents who were walking peacefully behind her.

"Please can we go swim?" She pleaded, dragging out the _ease_ in the word please, knowing that her parents were unable to resist it when she said it like that. James and Alicia looked at each other, each knowing that inevitably they'd give in.

"Well, if we _must…_ " James said, shaking his head, earning a laugh from his daughter.

"Oh, you two can, I'll watch." Alicia said, smiling.

"Oh but mommy, you _have_ to come with us!" Audrey protested, waving her arms about in objection.

"Come on, honey." James added, looking pleadingly at his wife. Alicia laughed.

"No, but you two go, have fun!" Alicia insisted. Audrey knew that there was no way her mother was going to change her mind, so she went back to trying to convince her father.

"Come on, daddy! I want to go swimming!" Audrey said, pointing to the deep blue ocean to her left. James sighed and laughed.

"Okay, sweetheart. Let's leave our clothes here with mommy and go swimming!" Audrey got so excited. Alicia looked lovingly at her only daughter as she took off her pink and white flower-covered beach dress to reveal her light blue swimming costume. Audrey loved that swimming costume so much - she insisted on wearing it every time they went to the beach or went swimming. James had neatly folded up his light shirt and placed it next to Audrey's dress by the side of Alicia. He took his daughter's hand as they walked the 20 ft distance to get to the water's edge. Audrey tentatively put one foot into the water, testing how cold it was.

"Ooh, daddy, it's cold!" She said, still extremely excited.

"Well," James started, he put his hands on his hips and looked as his daughter who looked back up at him, "if it's cold, maybe I should step in first?" Audrey laughed at her father's suggestion and nodded. James stepped forward into the water with both feet.

"How cold is it, daddy?" Audrey curiously asked.

"Well, it's… I have a better idea." James replied, smirking. He picked Audrey up in both arms and ran further and deeper into water. James had got up to his knees in the water, Audrey may have only been 7 but she was tall, so the water there would only reach her upper thighs. James swung Audrey from side to side, making her get closer to the water below her each time. Audrey laughed every time. James pretended to drop her a few times, which earned a few screams from Audrey followed by much laughter. After about half a minute, James held Audrey about 3 inches above the surface of the water, and then dropped her in. Her head disappeared under the water for a few moments before she stood back up.

"That's freezing daddy!" She exclaimed, laughing. James laughed. Audrey saw this as an opportunity to have some fun. Using her right arm, she splashed water right across his bare chest. After the initial shock of the cold water, James splashed her right back. They stayed splashing water at each other until Audrey dove under the water and emerged about 10 seconds later further away from where she just was. She'd been swimming since she was 3, and she was extremely good. Even though she was just 7, she could swim an entire length of the pool underwater.

"Well that's not fair," James shouted to Audrey, laughing "I can't get you if you're all the way over there!"

"Ha ha!" Audrey yelled back.

"That's it!" James shouted back as he began running over to her. Audrey ran away, laughing, but James' legs were bigger than hers so he caught up to her within seconds and began kicking water at her. She turned around and began doing to same thing. Alicia sat halfway down the beach. She had her knees up to her chest and was reading her book, but had gotten distracted by watching James and Audrey mess around. She smiled and laughed quietly to herself. She loved Audrey dearly, but she'd always been a daddy's girl. The two of them were having so much fun, it truly made Alicia so happy to see them both so happy. Alicia went back to reading her book, but just a few minutes later she heard the excited screaming of her daughter as she and James ran up the beach.

"I win!" Audrey yelled, throwing her arms up in victory as she reached her mother first. James trailed a few seconds behind, gasping for breath. Alicia laughed.

"Looks like daddy could do with some more running practice." She said.

"No way!" James declared, laughing as he sat down on the sand next to his wife. Audrey felt left out being the only one standing so she walked behind them both and sat down in between them. A few moments passed before anyone spoke.

"I'm hungry." Audrey stated.

"Me too." Alicia agreed. Both of them looked pleadingly at James to agree with them. James sighed, and laughed as he looked at both of his girls.

"Well, I guess I'm hungry then too." The three of them set about collecting all of their things. Audrey put her dress back on over her almost dry swimming costume and James put his top back and and helped Alicia put their few items back into their beach bag and they set off walking back to their car. Just before they reached the stairs, James stopped and said, "we need a picture, of all 3 of us." James asked a man who was walking past if he wouldn't mind taking a photo for them. The man agreed. James handed him his instant camera and went to join Alicia and Audrey. He put his left arm around Audrey's chest and his right one around Alicia's waist and held them both tightly. The man took the picture and handed the camera back to James. They waited a few moments for the photo to come out. The camera was only small so the picture was only a few inches big, but it was lovely. They were all smiling and they all looked genuinely happy.

"Well," Alicia said, "hasn't this been such a lovely day." James and Audrey agreed.

"But I'm still hungry." Audrey said, looking up at both of her parents. They both looked back at her, they laughed and smiled.

"Okay, sweetheart, let's go get some food." James said. Audrey ran in excitement up the wooden beach stairs followed by James and Alicia.

* * *

 **07:57 P.M. - November 16th 1978 - Heller Manor**

James and Audrey returned home after Alicia's funeral earlier that day. James looked sadly around the front room of their manor. After the funeral it made everything so much more real, he was a widower. Audrey had not cried during the service. She made sure that she didn't. She couldn't cry, crying was a sign of weakness, and she couldn't show that she was weak so she kept a brave face through the whole thing. James looked at his daughter who was a few steps ahead of him, taking off her black pumps and placing them with all the other shoes alongside the wall. He knew she was just putting up a brave front, but he couldn't help but admire her ability to stay strong. He'd cried a few times during the service and he was just amazed at how Audrey was able to keep it together.

"Are you okay, dad?" Audrey asked, looking up at her father. The question shocked him, he was supposed to be asking her that, not the other way around.

"Yes, sweetheart, I'm fine. How are you?" He asked, genuinely concerned.

"Well, mom wouldn't have wanted us to grieve, and mourn and be sad. That's not what she would have wanted. She would have wanted us to miss her, yes, but at the same time, she'd have wanted us to continue on with our lives and succeed and enjoy the time that we have." Audrey answered. James smiled, admiring his daughter's ability to look on the bright side.

"You know what, Audrey?" He asked, she looked curiously back at him, wondering what he was going to say next. "You're a wise head on young shoulders." He said, he smiled and looked down. Audrey thought about that for a moment, before smiling also.

"Dad…" Audrey said, her voice was trembling, she had no idea what she was going to say next.

"Come here, sweetheart." He said. He outstretched his arms and Audrey walked forward into his embrace. He held her tightly and stroked her back gently. She wrapped her little arms around his back and rested her head on his chest looking towards the chair in the living room where Alicia always used to sit. She still refused to cry. So she just let herself be held tightly by her father. "You know, Audrey? You're so much like your mom." James said, not to initiate conversation but just to offer some words of comfort to her. "She was as strong and as tough as you. You're like a mini her." He said, smiling softly to himself. Audrey laughed ever so slightly. "It may hurt now. Even if you try and make yourself immune to the pain, the loss… It will still hurt. And it will hurt for a while. You'll see things daily that remind you of her, and that bring back memories of her, some making you want to laugh, some making you want to cry, some making you extremely angry and some making you smile. It will hurt, every time you think of her for a while. But over time, it will hurt less and less. I'm not saying you'll forget about her, you just won't feel the pain, the sadness, that you felt, she'll just recur as a happy memory. One you'll cherish, one that will make you feel happy, make you feel warm inside." James hugged his daughter tightly. "I love you, sweetheart."

"I love you too, dad."

* * *

 **04:03 P.M. - March 26th 2000 - Rose Hill Manor**

Paul Raines watched in anticipation and admiration as Audrey walked down the aisle in Rose Hill Manor. All their guests stood up and watched as she made her way towards the altar. Paul thought she looked truly beautiful. Her dress was pearl white, it showed off her amazing figure and flowed out slightly at the bottom. The dress was strapless and made her look absolutely stunning. She had on small pearl earrings, a pearl necklace and basic but beautiful white high heels. Her hair was tied up using braids. Two strands of hair were strategically left loose and dangled down on each side of her head, just in front of her ears. She also had on her mother's wedding Tiara. James had given it to her a few days prior to the wedding saying that Alicia would have wanted her to have it. It looked perfect on her though. It was quite thin, but beautifully decorated with small diamonds and small pieces of silver. She held her bouquet of flowers tightly with both hands. Her father was standing on the right-hand side of the aisle, they smiled at each other. He was so proud of his daughter. She reached the altar and stood opposite her husband to be. The priest led the ceremony. Everyone watched in awe for the couple.

The time came for the vows. Paul went first.

"With this ring, I give you my heart. I promise from this day forward, you shall never walk alone. I will be by your side through thick and through thin. May my heart be your shelter, and my arms be your home." Audrey blinked back a happy tear as he slid her ring onto her finger and proceeded with her vows.

"With this ring, I give you my heart. I promise from this day forward, I shall love you for eternity. You will never be alone again for I will always be by your side. I will pack your lunch, make the bed and always kiss you when you're mad. And you will catch the spiders and hug me all the time." Everyone laughed.

"I will?" Paul asked, jokingly.

"You will, now let me finish." Audrey said back, earning a laugh from her family and friends. "I love you, for not just what you are, but for what I am with you too. I will hold you hand, and I will love you, forever."

"You done now?" Paul asked playfully.

"Yes." Audrey replied laughing. She slid his ring onto his finger gently and then looked up at his eyes.

"With the power invested in me by the district capital," the priest said, "I now pronounce you husband and wife." He looked at Paul, "you may now kiss the bride." Paul raised his left hand and cupped Audrey's right cheek in it and they looked into each other's eyes for a moment before they kissed each other. He wrapped his arms around her waist and she swung hers around his neck. Everyone clapped. They slowly broke the kiss and looked out at their family and friends. Audrey looked directly at her father first. He smiled back at her. It was the biggest and widest smile she'd ever seen him smile. Before she realised what she was doing she ran forward and hugged her father. He hugged her back. He was insanely proud of her, and proud to be her father.

"I'm so proud of you, sweetheart." He whispered into her ear.

"Thank you." She replied and hugged him even tighter.

Audrey had spent the past half an hour socialising with her guests when the music suddenly began playing. It was 'Your Song' by Elton John. Their song. Paul made his way through the crowd and led his wife to the centre of the room. Everyone made a circle around them to watch their first dance. Paul had his left hand on her waist and his right hand holding her left. She held his left hand with her right and her left hand was situated on his shoulder. They stared into each other's eyes as they listened to the lyrics.

 _And you can tell everybody this is your song_

 _It may be quite simple but now that it's done_

 _I hope you don't mind_

 _I hope you don't mind that I put down in words_

 _How wonderful life is while you're in the world_

"I love you, Audrey." Paul said.

"I love you, too." She replied.

"Did you really mean what you said, about me having to catch the spiders?" He asked, laughing.

"Well, one of us has to, and it sure as hell isn't gonna be me." She replied. They both laughed.

"I guess I'll have to then. Oh and I'm holding you to something else."

"To what?"

"To you making the bed."

"Oh I hate you." She said, jokingly.

Shortly after their first dance, everyone sat down to have food. Everyone chatted amongst themselves. About half an hour after they'd all finished their food, it was time for the traditional father-daughter dance. The song Audrey had chosen was 'What a Wonderful World' by Louis Armstrong as when she was a child, James would always sing that to her just before she went to bed and when she needed cheering up. James and Audrey stepped into the middle of the room and began dancing and talking.

"I like the song choice." James said, smiling.

"I thought you would." Audrey replied. "It took me ages to decide on which song to use. It was between two."

"What was the other one?" He asked, curious. Audrey looked away for a moment which confused James before answering his question.

"Unforgettable, by Nat King Cole." She said, looking back at her father. James could now understand why she hesitated before saying it. Although it was before Audrey's time, 'Unforgettable' was the song that Alicia had danced to for her father-daughter dance at their wedding back in 1964.

"Audrey, I know it's been 22 years, but I don't know, maybe it's the wedding but… How are you finding this day without mom?" James asked. Audrey couldn't look at him because if she did she felt like she'd start crying which she couldn't do, so she laid her head on his chest, looking away before she answered.

"It's kind of… I don't know how to explain really, but I guess I always imagined that on my wedding day she'd be here, you know?" James held his daughter tightly.

"She's still watching out for you, sweetheart. Wherever she is."

* * *

 **09:56 P.M. - 17th April 2009 - Raines' Home**

"You're never here!" Paul yelled at his wife from the left hand side of their bedroom.

"It's not my fault!" Audrey yelled back.

"It is! It's that freaking job of yours!" Paul shouted angrily.

"Well my job helps protect this country! So, yes, being special advisor to the secretary of defense for the U.S. will mean unpredictable hours!"

"Well, marriage is a two-player game. And it doesn't work if just one person is willing to put in the effort!"

"Well then maybe we should have thought about that then, shouldn't we." Audrey said. She turned around to face away from Paul as tears streamed down her face.

"I guess we should have. And anyway, you only have your job because your father is the secretary of defense and he still feels sorry for you after you lost your mother." Paul said bitterly. That was it for Audrey. They'd had many heated arguments over the past month, but he'd never gone that far. She stormed out of the bedroom and down the stairs, tears still flowing freely down her rosy cheeks. She still had her work clothes on so she grabbed her phone, phone charger, her purse and headed for the front door. Paul realised that he had gone too far and ran down after her. "Audrey, babe, I didn't mean that." He apologised upon realising that his wife was heading straight for their door. She didn't say anything. She threw open the door and then slammed it behind her. It was pouring with rain but she couldn't go back and get her jacket now so she kept on walking. The tears were still streaming down her face. She walked the 100 metre distance to the local park and collapsed onto one of the benches hysterically crying. She couldn't stop the tears from coming so she just let them fall. Sobs racked her body and she was shaking violently. But suddenly, she felt a strong, sharp pain in her stomach. She cried out in pain. She held her stomach with both hands but the pain was not getting any better. She could feel some kind of substance coming from her inner thighs. As much as she could see in the dark, it was a deep shade of red. _It must be blood._ She thought, which panicked her even more. Another sharp pain caused her to shriek out in pain once again. Everything suddenly became so blurry and she was overwhelmed by the feeling that she was falling. She could make out a woman yelling to nearby people for help, but then everything went black.

* * *

 **12:30 A.M. - 18th April 2009 - Sibley Memorial Hospital**

Audrey awoke with a pounding headache. She opened her heavy eyelids and looked around. She could see a paneled ceiling and the tops of walls. She sat herself up slightly and took a proper look around. She was in a hospital. The walls were cream coloured, there was a window looking outside to her left, and a wooden door to her right. She was in a room on her own. She looked behind her and realised she had an I.V. in her arm, and multiple ECG leads attached to her chest. She felt a slight pain in her stomach and wondered what it was so she lifted up the thin hospital sheet she had over her and looked underneath her thin, almost paper-like hospital gown and to her surprise, didn't find anything. Just as she'd pulled the covers on back over her, a nurse walked in to update her vital signs.

"Oh, you're awake!" She said, smiling.

"Yeah… What happened? Why am I here?" Audrey asked.

"I'm sure the doctor will be in shortly." The nurse replied whilst adding to Audrey's chart.

"Wait, please can you tell me where I am and why I'm here?" Audrey asked, again. The nurse contemplated answering. Nurses weren't supposed to tell patients things like that before a doctor, but Audrey was just a desperate woman wanting to know why she ended up in a hospital at gone midnight.

"You're at Sibley Memorial Hospital, and you had a miscarriage. A woman found you in a park and called 9-1-1." She replied. She walked out of Audrey's room, leaving Audrey alone with her thoughts. Then it hit her. She was pregnant, with Paul's child, with her douche of a husband's child, but she'd lost it. Many different emotions flooded in. But confusion and denial were definitely the strongest.

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 _Please favourite and review._


	2. Eyes Open

_Thank you all for being so (3 months...) patient with me for this fic!_

 _And also I'd like to thank the 6 of you who left reviews you made me all so happy, thank you!_

 _So anyway, here's chapter 2._

 _This is Jack's first day working for Heller, and the first time that he meets Audrey (AU, remember because we don't quite know how they met...)_

 _And yeah, the last part is a flashback to when before all this - if you look at the dates, it's something like half a year or a year before I've set this chapter ahah._

 _Also, I'm going as close as I can by the time that in the 24 world days 1-9 I guess happened so..._

 _Please enjoy! And follow and favourite and review ;) xo_

* * *

Chapter 2 - Eyes Open

 **09:20 A.M. - 30th November 2009 - DoD Headquarters, The Pentagon**

Jack Bauer walked confidently into the Department of Defense headquarters in Arlington, Virginia County after leaving his family, his home and his whole life back in Los Angeles. He walked up to the reception desk and asked for secretary Heller. He was directed to security.

Once he had passed through that he was sent up to the 3rd floor to secretary Heller's office. As he emerged through the doors of the elevator, he looked around the hall he was in. Many people walked up and down. The walls were covered in photos of past DoD members and other things.

"May I be of any assistance to you, sir?" A woman approached Jack. She was in her mid-thirties, she had long, blonde hair tied up in a neat half up, half down style and she was wearing a beige pant suit with a pearl white shirt and a thin, sliver necklace around her neck. Jack was momentarily speechless as he admired her beauty.

"I'm," Jack began, "I'm just looking for Secretary of Defense Heller?" As he said that he looked into the woman's eyes and noticed how sad they looked. They had no shine, no glimmer of light, no personality to them.

"Yes, that's right down here, may I ask, do you have an appointment?" The woman asked.

"Sort of." He replied.

"Sort of?" She asked.

"I'm his new advisor." Jack said, somewhat proudly.

"Oh." The woman replied, she kept a small smile of her face at all times so it was impossible for him to figure out what she was really thinking.

"Jack Bauer." Jack said, extending his hand. "And you are?"

"Audrey Raines," she extended out her hand and shook his. "Senior policy analyst here at DoD."

"It's a pleasure, Ms. Raines." Jack said.

"Likewise." Audrey replied graciously. They looked into each other's eyes for a moment, both feeling that oh so familiar pull of attraction, yet Audrey especially did not want to advance any further with those feelings. "Let me show you to Secretary Heller's office. This way." Audrey said, breaking the moment between them. Jack looked away from Audrey's face and obediently followed her down the hallway.

Within a matter of seconds they were at Secretary Heller's office. Audrey knocked on the door and awaited a response.

"Yes?" Secretary James Heller called out from the other side of the door. Audrey opened the door and stepped inside, Jack closely behind her.

"Ah, Audrey." He said. "What can I do for you?"

"This is Jack Bauer." Audrey said, introducing their company.

"Mr. Bauer!" James exclaimed. "I've been eagerly awaiting your arrival."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, sir." Jack said, extending his hand. James extended his hand also and shook Jack's.

"That'll be all, Audrey. Thanks." James said to his daughter, hinting that she could leave now. She nodded.

"It was a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Bauer." She said as she exited. Jack smiled.

"So, you've met my daughter then?" Heller said, laughing.

"Ms. Raines is your daughter?" Jack queried.

"Okay, well don't tell her I said that to you but yes, I'm sure you'd figure it out soon enough so I may as well tell you now." James said.

"All right, sir." Jack said. "What do you need me to do today?"

 **01:14 P.M. - DoD Headquarters, the Pentagon**

Jack Bauer now had an hour for lunch, and he couldn't help but want to spend it with Audrey. So he decided he'd try and find her desk. It didn't take long, well, with the help of the floors receptionist. He drew in a deep breath and proceeded to walk up to her desk.

"Ms. Raines." He said as he approached.

"Mr. Bauer!" Audrey said, not expecting to see him standing there. "Can I help you with something?"

"I…" Jack began, and then he laughed gently. "I was wondering if you would fancy having lunch with me?" He was growing anxious over her impending answer. He hoped to death that she would accept his offer.

"What, now?" She asked, eyebrows raised.

"If you're free, if not another time, maybe?" Jack answered. Audrey looked down at her desk and the papers that lay upon it and then back up at Jack.

"You know what?" Audrey began. "I'd love to." She smiled gracefully at him. Jack felt so relieved. That could've gone much worse.

 **01:19 P.M. - DoD Headquarters, DoD cafeteria, the Pentagon**

Audrey and Jack stood in line in the cafeteria belonging to the DoD.

"Can you suggest anything?" Jack asked, trying to make conversation.

"The burgers are pretty good, the fish has been off a couple of times so unless you're a gambling with salmonella kinda guy, I'd avoid that, and the salads are great." Audrey said. Her comment about the food made him feel more at ease.

"You come down here often?" He enquired.

"Every now and then." Audrey said. There was a brief silence that made the both of them a little uncomfortable so Audrey decided to add on to her response. "Normally I get so bogged down in my work I don't usually make it down here within my lunch hour."

"When I worked for CTU I never had a lunch break." Jack said, they both laughed gently. "I like this, it's not as 100% action 100% of the time like it was there."

"Do you miss the action of CTU?" Audrey asked. Jack thought a moment before answering.

"A bit, but as I said I like the… calmness of this job." Jack said.

"Just you wait until something major happens, it can get pretty intense." Audrey warned.

"How can I help you, miss?" The man behind the counter asked as Jack and Audrey got to the front of the line. "Oh Audrey! Nice to see you down here!"

"Hi George." Audrey said, smiling. "Nice to see you, too." George then looked over at Jack with a questioning look. Audrey caught this and laughed gently.

"George, this is Jack Bauer, he's Secretary Heller's new advisor." Audrey introduced. She then turned to Jack. "And Jack, this is George. He's worked here for ages, longer than me I think. But he's fun to have a conversation with."

"Fun? I'm sure there's a better word to describe me." George protested.

"How about cashier, there's people waiting." Audrey said with a wink. "I'll have the salad, please."

"That'll be $2." George said. Audrey handed him two dollar bills and he handed her a salad bowl. "Thanks." She said.

"Mr. Bauer? What can I get for you?" George asked. Jack scanned the menu. "I'll have the ham and cheddar sandwich, please."

"That'll be $3.50." George said. Jack handed him the money and he was handed a sandwich by one of the chefs.

"Thanks, and nice to meet you." Jack said.

"You too, Mr. B." George said. Audrey laughed and proceeded to find a table. She sat down, followed shortly by Jack.

"You know, you didn't advise me on the sandwiches, so if I die after eating this I will blame you." Jack said jokingly.

"Mmhmm... " Audrey replied, laughing. After swallowing a bite of her salad she started a conversation. "So, what have you done this morning?" Audrey asked.

"Not much, actually." Jack said, laughing. "Heller had me get familiar with some current issues he's looking into. What about you?"

"What about me?" Audrey asked.

"What did you do this morning?" Jack asked.

"I… Oh right, I looked at this study the NSA did on a military branch to see if it's findings corroborated with what I could find." Audrey answered.

"And did it?" Jack asked.

"Most of it, I did find some anomalies in a part concerning their funding, I guess that's my job for this afternoon." Audrey said, laughing at the daunting thought of researching that all afternoon. Despite Audrey's words and laughter, Jack noticed the familiar almost lifeless look in her eyes that he had first noticed this morning. They both ate a bit more of their food in silence for a few moments. "So, Jack Bauer… There seems to be a lot to know about you, wanna help me out?" Audrey asked, getting curious.

"Same about you, Ms. Raines." He replied, smirking.

"All right, you tell me one thing about you, and I tell you one thing about me, deal?" Audrey asked.

"Deal." Jack agreed.

"You first." Audrey said. She took another bite of her salad whilst she waited for his answer.

"I used to work at CTU: Los Angeles." Jack said.

"Oh come on, it has to be something I don't know." Audrey said, laughing.

"Fine." Jack said, also laughing. "I have a 27 year old daughter named Kim."

"Wow, really?" Audrey asked.

"Yep." Jack said.

"How old are you then?" Audrey enquired, laughing.

"Ah nope. Something about you first." Jack said, crossing his arms and also laughing.

"All right…" Audrey said, she began thinking of what she could say. "Secretary Heller is my father."

"I knew that, new one." Jack said, laughing.

"How?" Audrey asked. Jack stopped for a second, trying to figure out how to explain this without implicating Heller's and his conversation about romances.

"Secretary Heller. He just said it in passing." Jack said. Audrey narrowed her eyes at him but soon began laughing so she stopped.

"That never works." She said, still laughing. "Okay, um… I love country music."

"Nice." Jack said, smiling. It only took a matter of seconds for them both to begin laughing once again. Jack was just about to say something when Audrey abruptly got up.

"I-I-I'm sorry, Mr. Bauer." She stuttered. Jack began to get worried. "I-I-I have to g-go." She left her plate on the table and practically ran out of the cafeteria. Jack was left at the table. He felt considerably worried and concerned about Audrey. But he had no idea what he couple possibly do.

 **Meanwhile...**

After suddenly leaving her lunch with Jack, Audrey turned into the women's restroom. She checked that no one was in there, and when she was satisfied that no one was, she locked the door. She walked towards the row of 4 sinks and placed both hands on the marble top. She bowed her head slightly as she collected her breath. She could see the tears that had fallen from her eyes land on the surface. She looked up into the mirror and saw just what a mess she was. She laughed as she wiped the tears from under her eyes.

"This is pathetic." She said to herself. She knew what it was that was causing this. Ever since that night she had the fight with Paul and miscarried she'd warded away any attempts of potential romantic relationships. But there was something about Jack Bauer that just drew her to him, and when she realised that, it freaked her out. And she did the only thing she knew how to do; leave. The idea that she may subconsciously be letting herself fall for him, made her remember what happened the last time she fell for someone. It was great while it lasted, then it all went to hell and she came out more broken than she ever was before. She wiped away the few remaining tears and composed herself. And then she headed back into DoD and back to work.

 **01:42 P.M. - DoD Headquarters, the Pentagon**

Audrey stepped off the elevator and back onto the floor in which she walked. She walked past the receptionist and through a maze of workstations until she reached hers. Jack had returned to the floor shortly after Audrey had left him. He was sifting through some old case files as he noticed the blonde walking back in. Feeling concerned about her, Jack rose from the desk he was currently working at and walked over to Audrey's.

"Hey." He said quietly. Audrey looked up to see who it was. "Are you alright?" He asked. He also noticed the redness of her eyes, indicating that she had been crying not long ago.

"Yes." She replied quickly returning to her work.

"Audr-" Jack began, but was cut off.

"I'm fine, Jack. Please drop it." She said quickly. Jack took this as a sign that she didn't want to talk, but that wasn't going to stop him. But he decided to drop it for now.

"All right." He said. "Have a nice day."

"You too." Audrey said. Jack walked away but his mind was still focused on Audrey. He'd only known her for a few hours, but he could - and so could she - feel that instant pull between them, and their lunch - before she left - was one of the most enjoyable times that he'd had in quite a while. He thought back to what Secretary Heller had said; She's been hurt too much already in this lifetime. He wondered if this had anything to do with what had happened…

 **08:09 P.M. - Raines Residence - Gordonsville, Orange County, Virginia**

Audrey sat down on her sofa in her living room with a glass of red wine in hand. She was just about to pick up her book when she heard a knocking at her door. She tensed up immediately, no one would normally come around this late. She put her glass down on the table and walked up to the door. She opened it slowly.

"Don't be mad." Jack said. "I found your address in the DoD files. Again, please don't be mad."

"You're not allowed to do that." Audrey said, but she couldn't help but find his breach of protocol to be rather romantic. She noticed he was holding a brown paper bag. "What's in the bag?" She asked.

"Wine, chocolate and I don't really know what kinda movies you're into, so I found Casablanca, Brief Encounter, Sophie's Choice and Schindler's List. So you can pick." Jack said. Audrey looked at him with a look that said there's more to it than that. "...And after lunch today, I thought maybe you could use a friend."

"Well, I don't really think I can say no now." Audrey said. "Come on in."

"Thank you." Jack said. Jack made his way inside Audrey's home and looked around. It was quite big, but not too big. Cosy, but not claustrophobic. A very professional, yet feminine design. Jack removed his shoes at the door and placed them by a few pairs of Audrey's and followed her into her living room.

"You can sit on the sofa, if you'd like, or wherever." Audrey said, her voice getting quieter at the end. Jack noticed that but decided that it'd be best if he ignored it for now. "I'll get two…" She started saying but paused when she remembered she had hers already on the table. "Another wine glass." She brought it over and placed it down on the table next to hers. Jack pulled out the wine he had brought, the chocolate and the four DVDs.

"So, Brief Encounter, Schindler's List, Casablanca or Sophie's Choice?" Jack asked. "I'm sorry for the narrow choice, I really did have no idea what you like…"

"It's fine." Audrey said sitting down on the sofa next to Jack. "Casablanca and Schindler's List are actually two of my most favourite movies." Jack felt relieved.

"So, which one shall we watch?" Jack asked.

"You can pick." Audrey said.

"Are you sure?" Jack asked. Audrey nodded. "Okay… Schindler's List?"

"Sounds great." Audrey picked up the DVD from the table and got up and put it in her DVD player. She took the remote and then sat back down. Whilst she was getting it set up, Jack pulled out the wine and the chocolate from his bag.

"Again, I had no idea what you like, so I hope red wine - well I can see that you like red wine," Jack said, looking towards Audrey's glass on the table. "And as for the chocolate, I got milk, white and dark."

"To be perfectly honest with you, I can't stand dark." Audrey said, laughing. "But I love the others." Despite her laugh, Jack could still see that almost lifeless look in Audrey's eyes, and still felt terribly concerned. Audrey saw Jack about to start pouring the wine so she quickly finished off the small amount she had left in her glass. She was about to press play when Jack began talking.

"About earlier…" He began, Audrey was about to stop him, but part of her wanted to see where he was going to go with this. "I, I guess I've just been really concerned about you all day… You know, you can tell me, if you want. I mean I'll have an unbiased point seeing as I've only known you since, well today." Audrey smiled and looked down.

"Thank you, Jack." She said. "But if you don't mind, for now I guess, I'd prefer not to…"

"All right." Jack said, respecting her wishes. He could see the tears forming ever so slightly in her eyes. "Come here." He said. He then pulled her into a semi-tight embrace. He wrapped his arms around her small frame and held her. She first didn't hug him back, but after a few moments she did. She'd only known this man for about 12 hours, but she felt safe. But she felt the same with Paul when they first met, and the thought that this could end like that did scared her terribly so she built up walls when it came to romance, and Jack Bauer was going to be no exception. But for the moment, his embrace was making her feel better so she let it happen. A tear did escape her cheek and landed on his shirt, but luckily for her he didn't notice. She broke off the embrace after about 15 seconds and cleared her throat. She once again picked up the remote and hit play, starting the movie. By 10 minutes in, Audrey had rested her head of his shoulder and he had wrapped his right arm around her. They both felt the need to feel another human being because both had been estranged from contact like this for so long. They remained like that for the rest of the movie.

 **13:04 P.M. - 26th September 2008 - Tryst Café, Washington D.C.**

"So?" Audrey asked from her end of the table. "Why did you want to talk?"

"You've been avoiding me for the past 5 months and those are the first words I get from you? Who'd have ever thought we were ever married." Paul said, laughing.

"Paul, I'm here voluntarily, I could just as easily walk out that door right now. What do you want?" Audrey pressed. This was the first time that she'd seen Paul since that night when she stormed out and also had the miscarriage and she was beginning to get anxious over the whole situation. She had no idea quite how distressing seeing her husband again would be. Paul sighed.

"I want to try again." He said simply.

"Try again, don't you think me ignoring you for the past 5 months tells you that I don't want to try again." Audrey said. She got up, picked up her purse and her jacket and stormed out of the café. Paul got up and ran after her, fearing that if he let her go this time then this would be it. Audrey had got to the local park by the time Paul had caught up to her.

"Audrey!" He yelled loudly when he was just a few feet behind her.

"What?!" She yelled equally as loudly as she turned around. Tears were already in her eyes, and Pau noticed. Audrey was always so strong, but she would get really emotional when things hit too close to home or were extremely distressing. He'd noticed that time and time again whilst they were still married.

"Please. I'm truly, truly sorry for everything that I ever did to you." Paul apologised. The pair still kept their distance.

"You're sorry? You don't know half the stuff you did to me." Audrey yelled.

"I am sorry!" Paul yelled back. "I know everything I did, and I am truly, very sorry."

"You don't know everything!" Audrey yelled. "You don't know everything! That night, when you made that remark about me only having my job because of my father's position," Audrey stopped yelling for a seconds to wipe the tears off her her face that had been streaming down her rosy cheeks. When she realised that they weren't stopping any time soon, she carried on. "I had a miscarriage!" Paul was shocked. She pointed at a bench by the side of them. "Right there, right there on that bench. I blacked out pretty quickly but the doctors at Sibley say that some people called an ambulance, and I had had a miscarriage." She was no longer yelling, her voice had turned to a strangled whisper. The tears streamed down her cheeks as she recalled the memory. Paul was rendered speechless. He had absolutely no idea that Audrey had suffered a miscarriage, let alone been pregnant. His mind was flooded with emotions, anger, denial, sadness, guilt and even grief. "So," Audrey said. "As I said, you don't know half the things that you did to me. Now, leave me alone."


End file.
